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Porsche has chopped the top off the Vision 357 coupe concept unveiled in January – and swapped the screaming 4.0-litre flat-six engine for electric motors and batteries.
Porsche has paid homage to its classic 356 Speedster with the unveiling of the new Vision 357 Speedster – a low-slung concept car that hints at the upcoming electric successor to today’s 718 Boxster due in 2025.
Revealed at the 2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed in the UK, the Vision 357 Speedster follows the Vision 357 coupe that was unveiled as a kick-off to Porsche’s 75th-anniversary celebrations in January.
But while the Vision 357 Coupe features the 4.0-litre horizontally-opposed ‘flat’ six-cylinder petrol engine from the existing 718 Cayman GT4 RS with 368kW, the new Vision 357 Speedster is electric – and brings more than double the power of its fixed-roof sibling.
The electric drivetrain is sourced from the Porsche Mission R concept shown in 2021, which used dual motors claimed to deliver up to 800kW in qualifying mode.
It’s sufficient, Porsche claims, to provide the Vision 357 Speedster with a theoretical 0-100km/h time of “under 3.0 seconds”.
The new Porsche concept takes the same retro-inspired exterior styling as the Vision 357 Coupe but adds a lower windscreen, a tonneau cover over the passenger side of the cockpit and a carbon-fibre roll-over hoop with an integrated charging port behind the driver’s seat.
It also features 20-inch centre-lock wheels made of magnesium and a new silver-on-white 75th-anniversary livery.
Cameras mounted on wing-like elements ahead of the windscreen pillars are used as an alternative to traditional rear-view mirrors.
Inside, there are carbon-fibre-backed seats with Racetex microfibre upholstery and six-point harnesses.
The instrument binnacle is made up of a transparent display with digital graphics, while the steering wheel draws on that used in current Porsche models with a rotary dial for the various driving modes.
Porsche has confirmed the petrol-powered 718 Boxster and 718 Cayman will be replaced by new electric models, with officials of the German car maker suggesting they will be unveiled in 2025 prior to planned Australian sales the following year.
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